Innholdsfortegnelse for July 22, 2020 i Autocar

The all-new, ultra-lightweight 3.9-litre V12 engine that will power Gordon Murray’s new T50 supercar reaches a crucial milestone this week: running for the first time in production form on the dynamometers of its Northampton developer, Cosworth Engineering. The engine, billed by its creators as “the greatest road car V12 ever made”, is claimed to be the lightest-ever V12 (180kg), with both the highest rev limit (12,100rpm) and the highest power density (166bhp per litre). Tests have been proceeding for the past nine months on three-cylinder 12-valve prototypes as proving beds for the new engine’s aluminium pistons, titanium valves and conrods, gear-driven cam drive and crank-driven, 48V starter-generator. The last of these removes any need for a conventional belt-driven alternator. Work is now starting in earnest on refining the V12 as…

PORSCHE HAS REVEALED the new 911 Turbo in Coupé and Cabriolet forms, following the launch of the top-rung Turbo S earlier this year. The new model fills the gap between the 444bhp Carrera 4S and the 641bhp Turbo S, packing 572bhp and 553lb ft from its twin-turbocharged 3.7-litre flat-six engine. That’s 39bhp and 37lb ft more than the old 911 Turbo, enabling it to do 0-62mph in just 2.8sec and hit a top speed of 199mph. The new Turbo is capable of up to 23.5mpg on the WLTP cycle, while emitting between 271g/km and 284g/km of CO2. Power is delivered through an eight-speed dual-clutch automatic gearbox, while the Traction Management active four-wheel drive system can send more torque to the front axle than in the old model. The 911 Turbo…

Six years ago, Porsche, for some vague reason nobody truly understood, decided its Boxster and Cayman replacements – models to be prefixed ‘718’ – should have four-cylinder engines. For the Boxster, this meant the loss of its mid-mounted flat sixes, chiefly the 2.7-litre entry level and the fruitier 3.4-litre of the popular Boxster S. It also meant the gloomy spectre of downsizing with reliance on forced induction had fully descended on the greatest roadster of modern times, and obviously this hurt. For a while, it seemed even the upcoming but as yet unannounced new versions of the scintillating Cayman GT4 and tent-roofed Boxster Spyder wouldn’t be spared. And that was excruciating. But then Porsche realised the appeal of these very expensive special-series sports cars, marketed heavily on ideals of mechanical…

Where once it was a bit of a niche-busting oddity, the GLA 45 is today an entirely legitimate proposition. As we saw with our first UK drive of the standard, second-generation GLA (Autocar, 24 June), this is a fully fledged compact SUV rather than an A-Class that’s been hanging around the gym. As such, it sits on equal terms with Audi’s RS Q3 and nips at the heels of the larger Porsche Macan. However, it’s a bit of a wallet buster. Its circa £59k starting price is enough to raise eyebrows, but our left-hand-drive test car (driven in the UK) had the German equivalent of the Plus pack (£6000 for bigger wheels, adaptive dampers, bodykit, better seats and so on). Options took its price to ¤87,863 (about £78k). Even putting…

MODEL TESTED 535d SPORT BMW has offered diesels for only 21 years whereas Mercedes has been selling them since 1936, but Munich’s first – the 524td – was 1983’s fastest and vaulted the company to the forefront of diesel technology. Last year, 54% of UK 5 Series saloons (and 74% of Tourings) were diesels. Those numbers are likely to rise with the new 535d. It uses the 530d’s all-alloy 2993cc six-cylinder engine, but with an extra turbocharger, strengthened crankcase and modified common-rail injection system. The turbos blow sequentially, like the Porsche 959’s nearly two decades ago. By 2000rpm, the second, larger turbocharger is spinning, the two in tandem providing the 413lb ft peak. At higher revs, the second turbo works alone, yielding 272bhp at 4400rpm. This is our first test…

On the very day we spoke to Gilles Vidal, Peugeot’s design director for the past 10 years, it became clear that the Geneva motor show, the best-loved and most open-minded of the European salons, wouldn’t be able to recover in 2021 from its shock cancellation in March, as many had hoped. Manufacturers, shaken by the pandemic upheaval and scared by the impending cost of another Geneva, had just told the organisers they would be unlikely to support next year’s event, which came as quite a shock. Wouldn’t the lack of Europe’s most-loved motor show, we media types wondered, curb the very design progress that people like Vidal have always championed? Surely car creators need motor shows to display their wares and justify their existence? The Frenchman’s reply came as another…

Alonso’s delayed gratification Fernando Alonso will make a shock return to Formula 1 with Renault next year – but has told the team to focus its attention on the following season. The Spaniard, who turns 39 next Wednesday, will rejoin the outfit with which he won his two world titles, but team chief Cyril Abiteboul says Alonso wants the team to focus on being as ready as possible for the new rules package: “For him, it’s all about 2022. He’s saying: ‘Look guys, forget about 2021.’” Mugello added to Formula 1 schedule The Ferrari-owned Mugello circuit in Italy will host an F1 race for the first time, having been added to the calendar on 13 September. Running a week after the Italian Grand Prix at Monza, the event will be…

FEATURE How to be a great driver We all want to be the best driver we possibly can be. Let veteran road tester Andrew Frankel take you out for a ride… ROAD TEST Porsche Taycan Game-changing electric car meets the most thorough test in the business FEATURE Aston’s new boss AMG’s Tobias Moers will move to Gaydon on 1 August. Here’s what’s in his in-tray EVERY WEEK FIRST DRIVE Honda E Stylish electric city car has now arrived in the UK. We appraise it MOTORSPORT BTCC preview Everything you need to know ahead of the BTCC’s return on 2 August SUBSCRIBE autocar.co.uk/subscribe or see p18…

MILEAGE 2934 WHY WE’RE RUNNING IT Entry-level Lambo is stirring to drive, but what’s it really like to live with? HR Owen’s service centre, on an industrial estate in north-west London, is a surreal place. And not only because of the forecourt Tetris that provides full-time employment for an iron-nerved Bulgarian called Todor. Sounds fun, doesn’t it? But would you really want the responsibility to thread £450,000 of Rolls-Royce Phantom between a Lamborghini Aventador SVJ and a carbonfibre-bodied Muricélago? Business, it seems, is good. The place is overflowing with brand-new and almost-but-not-quite-classic machinery from Rolls, Maserati, Bentley and Lamborghini. Frankly, I’m not sure a better metaphor exists for the explosion in London’s number of ultra-wealthy individuals than the daily grind on School Lane. This is also an impressively active Bugatti…

Morris 8 Allan rather enjoyed Roderick’s Morris (Reader’s Ride, 24 June): “By coincidence, I was also a 19-year-old student in 1959. Damn, just given my age away! And, more to the point, I was driving a Morris 8. Well, sort of. My first car, it cost me £30, and of all the cars I have owned, this was the ugliest. You might, if you were kind, describe it as an early kit car. “It was not of my making. Some genius had taken an ex-GPO van, hacked off the body and rebuilt it as what? An open-top two-seater? I had some fun in it, until I got pulled over by the police on Gravel Hill, just off the A2, and fined £3 for a defective handbrake. Well, it was a…

Alpine A110 S Price £54,990 One of the most widely adored new cars of recent years, the Alpine A110 is already considered a great. The S brings a 40bhp power bump, firmer, shorter springs, stronger anti-roll bars, larger brake discs and wider tyres. The result? A very special car that is more focused on the track than the road and therefore isn’t felt to be the purist’s choice in the A110 line-up. But it will still go down as a highly sought-after variant, and indeed the small numbers it will sell in compared with the standard A110 should help armour the value of A110 Ss sold today.…

Thanks to the prowess and dexterity of rallying greats Colin McRae, Richard Burns and Petter Solberg, the Subaru Impreza WRX is widely upheld as one of the most competitive cars ever to compete in its field, vying for space in the WRC hall of fame with the Audi Quattro, Lancia Fulvia and, obviously, its long-time foe, the Mitsubishi Lancer Evolution. Unfortunately, such hallowed status always becomes a curse for manufacturers when it comes time for a car’s reinvention, and so it was with a certain degree of shock and disdain that enthusiasts received the hatchback third-generation Impreza WRX in 2007. That change is no bad thing, you may think, but this was a moniker intrinsically linked with the world of saloon-shaped dirt-track destroyers, so we can forgive that bit of…

TVR has outlined a bold 18-month plan to reboot its activities and bring its Griffith sports car to production in 2022 by raising new funds in the bond market and pressing ahead to fit out its assembly facility in Ebbw Vale, Wales. The revitalised firm, whose principal directors, chairman Les Edgar and operations chief John Chasey, were joined late last year by a new CEO, Jim Berriman, is now in the throes of raising £25 million on the Dublin bond market – Europe’s largest. The bosses calculate that by the time TVR starts building cars, it will have spent around £45m on the project. TVR already holds orders worth around £40m for the 200mph Griffith, which was revealed at the Goodwood Revival in 2017. The company says it continues to…

“You step into the car easily, noting the big doors and low, narrow sills. The driving position is roomy and you sit low, sighting over the wheel and down the bonnet, which is satisfactorily lumpy. “The instrument pod ahead is characterised by four cylindrical brass switches, like nothing you’ll find anywhere else. You read your speed in figures from a little tunnel in the centre of the binnacle. Engine revs are displayed on an LED graph that grows, left to right, as the engine accelerates. “Like all the controls, the clutch is quite heavy. That’s deliberate; this is a TVR. The gearlever is fairly high, has a huge gearknob and, again, needs deliberate movement. “The engine sound is deep, powerful and delivered in stereo from big side pipes, one just…

THE ELECTRIFICATION OF the Maserati brand has begun with the launch of a mild-hybrid version of the Ghibli saloon. The Ghibli Hybrid replaces the V6 diesel model, mixing a turbocharged 2.0-litre four-cylinder petrol engine with 48V mild-hybrid technology for a combined 325bhp and 332lb ft. Maserati claims the drivetrain offers the performance of a V6 petrol but with 25% fewer CO2 emissions (from 192g/km) to be on a par with a V6 diesel. Fuel economy is from 33.2mpg, although both figures are subject to final homologation. The new drivetrain allows the Ghibli Hybrid to cover 0-62mph in 5.7sec and reach a top speed of 158mph. Drive is sent to the rear wheels via a ZF eight-speed automatic transmission. The 2.0-litre engine is modified from its installation in Alfa Romeo models,…

ADDITIVE MANUFACTURING – a sophisticated form of 3D-printing – has been used in the car industry for years now for rapid prototyping of components, but its use for making production parts has been gathering pace, too. Now Porsche has succeeded in 3D-printing some of the most highly stressed components in the 911 GT2 RS engine: the pistons. The new pistons are 10% lighter than the originals, allowing the engine to rev 300rpm higher and develop almost 30bhp more power. Pistons in a high-performance engine are subjected to massive stress from loads and heat and are usually cast or forged from aluminium alloy. Porsche has worked with Mahle and printer manufacturer Trumpf to develop the cutting-edge laser metal fusion process. Drawing on data taken straight from the design computers, pistons are…

For a car maker looking to gain added performance cachet in the electric car ranks, it’s no longer sufficient to endow your top model with just one electric motor. To really stand out, you need two or, as is the case with the new S version of the Audi E-tron Sportback, three. That’s right, three electric motors: a larger one sitting up front and two smaller ones nestled in a subframe within the axle at the rear. Together, they develop a combined 429bhp and 596lb ft of torque, or some 27bhp and 107lb ft more than the twin-motor E-tron Sportback 55. That’s not all, though. A so-called overboost function triggered on the kickdown in Sport driving mode adds 67bhp and 22lb ft for brief periods of full-throttle thrust, taking the…

MODEL TESTED 1.5 eTSI 150 STYLE DSG Price £28,025 • Power 148bhp • Torque 184lb ft • 0-60mph 8.3sec • 30-70mph in fourth 9.1sec • Fuel economy 45.9mpg • CO2 emissions 134g/km • 70-0mph 45.4m If success breeds complacency in the car business, one car above all others ought to bear it out: the Volkswagen Golf. And yet, over nearly five decades, we’ve yet to see much more than a sniff of proof of it. In the Golf’s case, the standing of one of the industry’s quiet icons only gets greater and greater. Understanding the unique position the Golf occupies on this continent can only be done by appreciating the margin of its sales dominance. In a good calendar year, there might be as many as 10 new cars that break…

It has taken bravery to redefine what remains the biggest-selling new car in Europe as Volkswagen just has. Some will simply see it as ‘another Golf ’. Others may not even think it a particularly attractive one. And yet there was clear risk in subtly but markedly reappraising this car’s ride and handling as VW has; and more so, probably, in reimagining the cabin ergonomics, and in betting big on relatively expensive touchscreen infotainment technology and the latest active safety systems. While this car lacks a little of the lavish material plushness we’ve grown used to from Golfs, it’s no disappointment for perceived quality. Meanwhile, in the way it drives - for its laudable refinement, economy, versatility and drivability and, above all else, simply for its ready-for-anything completeness as a…

FOR BETTER GREG MACLEMAN FEATURES EDITOR ASTON MARTIN DBS SUPERLEGGERA Where Aston has succeeded with the DBS isn’t in making a car that’s objectively better than its 1960s namesake but in recreating the spirit of the gentleman’s express. Horrendously costly, hugely quick and dripping with cowhide, it’s a car that makes you want to wear string-backed gloves and outrun the gendarmes down to the Riviera. While most reboots leave me longing for the character and purity of the original, the DBS has both qualities in spades. With gorgeous looks and blistering V12 performance, there’s no shame in choosing it over the classic. FOR WORSE VOLKSWAGEN BEETLE The new Beetle may have been a hit when the concept was first shown in 1994 but, for me, the design always fell to…

Renault Sport has six drivers on its Academy young driver scheme this season, competing at various levels ranging from the Formula Renault Eurocup right up to Formula 2. But unless something changes dramatically, none of them will be racing for the French firm in Formula 1 next year. Instead, the race seat opened up by Daniel Ricciardo’s surprise switch to McLaren will be taken by Fernando Alonso. Clearly, the Spaniard has quite the CV: two F1 world titles, both secured driving for Renault, 32 race wins and 97 podiums. But he also will be 39 years old when next season starts, has spent two years out of F1 and last won a grand prix in 2013. So why is Renault looking to the past with the return of Alonso, when…

Lada 1200 £2995 If the Fiat 124 is too mainstream for you, then step right this way, comrades, for some underground Cold War memorabilia. Based on the 1967 European Car of the Year-winning Fiat, this model was licensed and re-engineered by Russian car giant VAZ (now AvtoVAZ) under the VAZ-2101 nameplate domestically and exported as the Lada 1200 from 1974. It was the first Lada to reach the UK and, while it had Italian-inspired styling, there was more than a hint of Soviet influence, too. Among the changes to suit Russian tastes (and climate) were increased ground clearance and a softer suspension set-up, as well as a reinforced chassis and the ability to hand crank the engine (in case the battery succumbed to Siberian winters). But with cars like this,…

An owner’s view ANDREW WONG “My car was owned by Subaru UK and reviewed by the press; I bought it from a Subaru dealer afterwards. The hatchback isn’t a bad car. The Driver’s Control Centre Differential (DCCD) system is crazy – it allows no slip, even in heavy rain – and is a lot better than in previous models. The only downside is the 2.5-litre engine: having heard all those ‘chocolate piston’ stories, you always think it might blow up if you drive aggressively. I’m not sure exactly what my engine management light was related to, but the car is still active at the moment, so it probably wasn’t a major issue. I got £9000 for it in 2015, and it’s still worth £9000 today.” Buyer beware… ▪ ENGINE Query…

Nissan’s electric line-up could soon include a large SUV, joining the Leaf and the new Ariya SUV that will be launched in late 2021. As Nissan’s third bespoke electric model, a large SUV is a natural next step given the demand for such vehicles in China and the US, as well as the company’s role in the Renault-Nissan-Mitsubishi Alliance to lead projects involving large cars. The recently revealed Ariya uses the new CMF-EV architecture, a modular platform created purely for electric models. As with other car makers such as Volkswagen and its MEB electric platform, a family of Nissan models is expected to use the architecture given the heavy investment involved. Nissan Europe’s EV boss, Helen Perry, hinted at the large SUV, saying: “The platform will be used for other…

Audi has ditched the SQ7’s and SQ8’s 429bhp diesel V8 for a 500bhp petrol V8. The two sports SUVs now use a twin-turbo 4.0-litre engine found in Audi RS and Porsche models. The move comes less than a year after the SQ8 first went on sale. The new unit also puts out 568lb ft (96lb ft less than the diesel V8) for a 0-62mph time of 4.1sec. Cylinder deactivation features but, unlike in Audi’s diesel S models, mild-hybrid technology does not. The models will go on sale later this year, with prices and efficiency figures to be confirmed.…

Ford has revived the iconic Bronco name for a new family of rugged SUVs, launching two-door and four-door off-roaders beside a more road-focused model. Available to order for the first time since 1996, the Bronco is designed for the hugely popular off-roading market in the US and isn’t currently destined for the UK. The Jeep Wrangler-rivalling machine is based on the same platform as Ford’s Ranger pick-up truck. It features ‘heritage-inspired’ styling that evokes the Bronco’s long history, with short overhangs, boxy bodywork and a wide stance. The SUV sits on tyres of up to 35in in diameter, offering a ground clearance of 11.6in, a maximum breakover angle of 29deg and a 37.2deg departure angle, along with the ability to ford water up to 33.5in deep. The Bronco is offered…

March -44%, April -97%, May -89%, June -35%: the past four months of UK car registrations have read like a horror show. In turn, grim acceptance has become frustration to get going again and now a mix of hope and despair, as pent-up demand unlocks good news tempered by the reality that it will, surely, run out of steam eventually. After an initial dalliance, the UK government has now made it clear it is not ready to step in with incentives as it did so successfully in 2009 during the financial crisis, reasoning that there are more deserving cases for its limited resources and leaving the industry’s 35-plus car makers to come up with their own solutions. But how will they play out? Fiddling at the edges One market analyst…

Hyundai can’t seem to keep its hands off the i30 N. Soon after the original came the i30 N Fastback, which added coupé styling into the mix and a suspension tune that was slightly softer than that of the at times vice-like sibling. Now, less than three years after we had our first drive of the original in late 2017, Hyundai has seen fit to launch yet another take on its inaugural hot hatch. This one comes with an updated suspension tune that’s more in line with what you get on the Fastback. The front spring rates have been softened by some 5%, bigger bump stops have been swapped in and there’s a slightly slimmer anti-roll bar across its nose. The front and rear dampers have been tweaked, too, and…

VW GOLF 1.5 eTSI 150 STYLE Typically rounded and versatile VW does sophistication in a slightly different way but still very successfully. Worth the price. FORD FOCUS 1.5T 150 TITANIUM X AUTO As big as ever on handling dynamism and value, even if the more complete VW now pips it. TOYOTA COROLLA 2.0 HYBRID DESIGN Higher-end hybrid powertrain demands consideration in this company. Classy to drive, too. SEAT LEON 1.5 eTSI 150 FR Plenty of car for the money, with more sporting edge than the Golf, although its twist-beam rear axle makes for a poorer ride. MERCEDES A200 SPORT AUTO Smallest Merc is big on luxury feel and on-board tech but isn’t as refined, slick or pleasant to drive as the others here.…

Today’s premise isn’t very complicated. The seventh-generation 911 Turbo, driven here in S trim for the full 641bhp monty, moves Porsche’s famous export away from its recent roost as an ICBM-quick but more long-legged device and to somewhere sharper and considerably harder. Somewhere where its road-racer roots are once again threatening to break through; where its supercar-slaying credentials have, in the 45 years since the original 3.0-litre 930 Turbo was born, never felt so strong. Meanwhile, McLaren, with its new GT, has given us a machine that in the metal and on paper shrieks supercar but is really, according to CEO Mike Flewitt, “designed for distance” and “refines the notion of a grand tourer in a way that only a McLaren could”. Clearly there’s an element of convergence here. For…

Excellent news: you’ve bought an off-roader. A new world awaits: world without asphalt, road rage, roadside rubbish, middle-lane hogs or tailgaters. Or public toilets or recovery services, but let’s not dwell. Using a 4x4 as it was intended for the first time can be somewhat daunting, though. This, then, is a rough, step-by-step guide to off-roading. It’s by no means a comprehensive instruction for every situation you could possibly find yourself in, but it contains lots of good advice – and, crucially, we hope, no bad advice. STEP 1 KNOW YOUR VEHICLE You might be using a full-on 4x4, but even many modest crossovers have a surprising degree of ability. Four-wheel drive is crucial in poor conditions, but all-terrain tyres are even more essential. Tyre quality is typically what stands…

The Formula 1 season-opening Austrian Grand Prix of a fortnight ago was packed with drama and entertainment, featuring collisions, spins, penalties, safety car periods and more mechanical retirements in one afternoon than we had seen for a long while. Mercedes-AMG’s Valtteri Bottas upstaged world champion team-mate Lewis Hamilton, Charles Leclerc hustled an uncompetitive Ferrari to second and McLaren’s 20-year-old British charge Lando Norris snatched a dramatic maiden podium. It was the sort of race that would thrill fans – except there weren’t any in the stands at the Red Bull Ring. Instead, coronavirus-induced safety measures meant the race was the first-ever grand prix held without a crowd, effectively running as a made-for-TV event. It created a slightly surreal atmosphere for those few at the track. Inevitably, it lacked the usual…

What about Botnar? There’s another name that Steve Cropley might consider for “having a significant effect” on motoring in the UK (‘Twelve good men and true’, 17 June), although probably they never met. As a young man, he was twice given harsh jail time in Romania for his then communist leanings, fought with the French Foreign Legion in the war, was captured by the Germans, escaped and became a significant member of the French Resistance in Paris. After the war, he became involved with cars, and in the 1960s he saw an opportunity in the UK. His name was Octav Botnar, and he brought Datsun to a Britain that had been fed a diet of Morris Marinas and Austin Allegros. Botnar promoted the virtues of value for money, huge reliability…

MILEAGE 1211 WHY WE’RE RUNNING IT In the absence of a new RS, is the latest Focus ST good enough to be considered a credible flagship fast Ford hatchback? Now that the 1000th mile has rolled under the Focus ST’s elegant 19in rims, a few preliminary thoughts – some, all or none of which may be modified, contradicted or confirmed as the months elapse. Firstly, and I guess most importantly, it feels like the kind of car that I want a fast Ford to be. Which means it’s more than just fast. It has urgency and attitude, too. It’s not a suave sophisticate like a hot Volkswagen Golf, and nor is it intended to be. Its suspension is notably firm, which would be properly problematic were its movements not so…

LAND ROVER SERIES 3 This isn’t strictly about the Lorry. A neighbour was having a clear-out and offered me a couple of ramps. I find it hard to refuse free stuff, especially useful stuff. I already have a set, but they are blue and these are rust red. The thing about ramps is that with the fancy overhangs and low suspension of many moderns, they are difficult or impossible to use. Not so with the old stuff. Now I can have two of them in the air at once. No idea why I’d need to, but at least it’s an option. Especially after I filled my garage pit in, because it resembled a tiny swimming pool.…

No doubt you’ll have opinions of the bloke himself, but it says a lot about Elon Musk’s foresight that the oldest model in Tesla’s current line-up still feels fiercely futuristic compared with almost any other new car. In fact, even if you buy a six-year-old Tesla Model S, it’s more cutting-edge and innovative than many of the modern alternatives, whether they’re engine-powered or electric. And while some versions of the Model S asked for north of £100,000 when new, you’ll find that used ones start from just £30,000 today. No matter the model you go for, you’ll get a big car that handles tidily, rides nicely and has a dose of luxury to go with its sizeable electric advantages. Used market prices start with a 60 or 80 model from…

LANCIA FULVIA COUPE RALLYE 1.3 S The phrases ‘barn find’ and ‘project car’ are as exciting as they are potentially ruinous and they’re entirely appropriate here. This sorry-looking Fulvia Coupé was sold for £2332, half what the seller was hoping for at auction. Rescued from Italy last year, where it was believed to have been off the road for 20 years, it could, with enough love and money (but mainly money), get moved on for 10 times as much as it sold for here once it’s done up. What joy it would be restoring it to full V4, rally-ready condition. Just try not to think about how much of a money pit it could become in the meantime.…